San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1887-10-18
A HARD BARGAIN.
BY WALTER BEsANT.

olgntpenny stamp. I'm not allowed to
answer any questions you may put, Mr..
Lucraft, nor TO ask you any; so take your
money and good morning to you. sup
pose, like the rest of them, you don't
know the name Of your benefactor, and
would like to-yes; but you needn't ask
me, and I've orders not to admit you TO
see either Mr.. Charges or Mr.. Crackett
They'd trouble enough with the last but
one. He broke into their Office once,
! drunk, and laid about him with the
ruler
| burst into cold dew Of terror.
However, Mr.. Lucraft, l hope you
will be more fortunate than your prede-
cessors.
"Where are they' Who are they''
81 do not know where they are, not for
a certainty" he replied with grin. But
we may guess. Dead and buried they are,
all of them. Gone to kingdom come; all
died of the same thing, TODD. T. De-
liciOus trimmings killed them. Poor old
| gentleman! He's too good for this world,
as everybody knows and the more he's
taken in the more he's deceived. Any
how, he's very unlucky in his pensioners.
| He did say when the last went off that he
would have no more; he wept over it, and
| declared that his bounty was always
| abused; but there never was such benev-
olent old chap. only wish he'd take a
| fancy to me-"
"What did you say is his name, by the
wayY'
The clerk looked at Lie with cunning
| wink.
''If you don't know, / am sure l do
| not" he said. Here i, the check, Mr..
Lucraft, and 1 hope you will continue to
come here and draw it a good deal longer
than the other chaps. But there's q
| blight on all the pensioners. Lord, what
a healthy chap Tom Kirby-he was a
| Monmouth man-looked when he first
came for his checks! As strong as bull
| and as fresh as n lark"
"A good appetite had heS"
"No; couldn't eat anything after a bit;
said he fancied nothing Lost his taste
| entirely. He pinned away and died in q
galloping consumption before the third
| mouth was due. Nobody ever saw him
drinking, but he was drunk every night.
| regular, like the rest. Perhaps it's only
| coincidence. Better luck to you, Mr.. Luz
craft
This conversation did not rcassure me,
| and determined to go over to Bucklers-
bury at once and see my patron. | found
| the post against which | was leaning when
| he accOSted me; there was no doubt about
| that, for the hares and cauliflOwcrs were
| still in the shop window, only they looked
| disgusting to me this morning. | found
| the street into which he had led me, and
| then-then-it was the most eXtraOrdi-
nary thing-I could not find the door by
which we entered. Not only was there
no door, but there seemed no place where
such door as | remembered could exist
| in this little, narrow, winding street l
went up and down twice. looked at all
| the windows. / asked policeman If he
had ever seen an old gentleman about the
| street such as | described, or such negro
| as BOulede-neige; but he could give no
| information. Only as | prowled slowly
| along the pavement heard distinctly-it
| gave me u nervous shock that | could
| not account fOr-the Internal "Cluck-
| cluckr' of the negro with the cold, soft
hands, the wrinkled skin and the fiery
| red eyes. He was chuckling at me from
some hiding place of his own, where he
| was safe. He had done me no harm that
knew of, but hated him at that mo-
| ment.
| was by this time not at all elated at
| nv good fortune | even cravcd to have
| back again what | had sold. ! felt heavy
at heart, and had a presentiment of fresh
| trouble before me. | thought of the fate
| of those unknown and unfortunate prede-
cessOrs, all dead in consequence of drink,
| evil courses and d. Z. Heavens! was ! too
to die miserably with delirium tremens,
after had sold my taste, and could only
| tell brandy from water, like the cask
which might hold either, by the smell?
| At 1:30-the luncheon time for all who
have appctites-the sense of being gOrged
came upon me again, but this time with
| out the giddiness. / went to a tavern in
the Strand and fell sound asleep. When
awOke at 6 the oppression had passed
away. And now ! began to realize some
thing of the consequences of my act. l
say something, because worse, far worse,
remained behind. | was doomed, l saw
clearly, to be the victim of the old mau's
| gluttony. He would eat and | should
suffer. Already, as l guessed from the
clerks statements, he had killed four
strong men before me. was to be the
fifth. went again to Bucklersbury, and
| sought in every house for something that
might give me a clew. l loitered in the
quiet city streets in the hope of finding
my tormentOr, and forcing him to give me
back my bond There was no clew, and
| QlQ not meet him. But L IelC MIN. lie
began dinner, as nearly as l could feel,
about O'Clock; he took his meal with de-
liberation, judging from the gradual
nature of my sensations; but he took an
amazing quantity, and by 8 O'Clock the
weight upon me was so great that l could
scarcely breathe. How l cursed my folly
How impotently writhed under the bur
den l had wantOnly laid upon myself
And then he began to drink. The fiend,
the scoundrel, felt the fumes mount tC
my head; there was no eXhilaratiOn, no
forgetfulness of misery; none of the pleas
ant gradations of excitement, hope and
confidence through which men are acCus
toned to pass before arriving at the tinal
stage, the complete oblivion of intoXica
ton. felt myself getting gradually but
hOpelessly drunk. | struggled against
the feeling, but in vain; the houses went
round and round with me; my speech
when tried to speak, became thick; the
flags of the pavement flew up and STRUCK
me violently on the forehead, and l be
came unconscious of what happened after
ward.
CHAPTER III.
In the morning found myself lying OF
stone bench in a small whitcwasheC
| Nv hrnpg NVnra thrnbhinp and m